Memento Mori
by NightRanger85
Summary: The dead will be remembered. One way or another.
1. Prologue: The Next Great Adventure

**Prologue:  
The Next Great Adventure**

Disclaimer: I don't own either EVA or Bleach.

* * *

The air was chilly, a light fog covering the area. A cold light shone down through the mists as the night deepened.

A single figure's silent steps broke the stillness.

Tall and slender and garbed in white, he was a silent sentinel for this place of death and rebirth.

He walked over to a small patch of wild melons growing in the mist. Bone-white fingers reached down, plucking at an unfortunate weed. The plant instantly withered in his grasp.

Dull blue eyes shone in the twilight, one bare, the other from behind a broken mask of nightmares.

It had been near a century since his body had passed on. And yet, he stayed.

He owed too much to them to leave.

This place was a grave, a tomb, for all those he had come to know. All those he had come to love, to cherish.

All of those he had failed to protect.

In those rare time he dared explore the surface, he'd learned that he and the others were demonized, portrayed as terrorists and cultists. The Children in particular.

He didn't care about being called a monster.

But the others?

They didn't deserve it. Any of it.

And so he would walk this damned ground so they could rest in peace.

_'Misato. Rei. Asuka.'_

_'I'm sorry...'_

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Kurotsuchi taichō, what is it that you requested a meeting of all 1st and 2nd Seats?"

"My apologies Sōtaichō, but I have reason to believe that we have found a rogue Menos."

"What class?"

"Our surveys currently suggest it is at least an exceptionally powerful _Adjuchas_ or even a _Vasto Lordes_, Kuchiki taichō."

"A Vasto Lordes!..."

"...the hell did we miss...?"

"Silence! Zaraki taichō, Kuchiki taichō, Kurotsuchi taichō, I hereby authorize you to deploy Shinigami to contain or destroy this rogue Hollow at all costs."


	2. Those Left Behind

**Those Left Behind**

Disclaimer: I am neither Kubo Tite or Hideki Anno. As such, I don't own anything.

* * *

"_Kami_..."

Abarai Renji, fukutaichō of the 6th Division had seen a great deal of destruction in his centuries-long existence; as one of the few _shinigami_ that had attained _bankai_, he unashamedly admitted that was the cause of a good deal of said destruction.

But what he saw below was well beyond _anything_ he had even dared to to dream of.

What had been as shining, sprawling metropolis had been utterly pulverized. Craters and oddly shaped depressions broke the once-neat patterns of highways, streets, and blocks. To complete the picture, a giant hole in the ground swallowed up the majority of what had been the city. In it's place was a massive void that reminded the 6th Division lieutenant disturbingly of a Hollow hole.

"20th through 12th squads, spread out!" he said, shaking off dark thoughts. Survivor of the Winter War or not, _vasto lordes_ were _never_ an easy target, much less being able to neutralize it. Not without sustaining massive casualties in the process. "Form a perimeter! 11th through 7th squads, begin a search pattern and _do not engage the hollow_! Not until we have a better idea what were dealing with!"

He looked to his superior, the tall and cold Kuchiki Byakuya-taichō.

"Everyone else, stay close and be prepared to enter combat at a moment's notice," said Byakuya. "If any of you discover our target, notify Zaraki-taichō and the 11th Division immediately."

Turning away from his captain, Renji spotted 6th Division's new 4th Seat. Like Kuchiki-taichō, she was cold and quiet, preferring to let the situation resolve itself or crush it utterly. In fact, the girl was in many ways even more stand-offish than the reticent Byakuya, which was a feat in and of itself.

Today, she was different.

Unlike many _shinigami_ recruited out of Rukongai, Ayanami Rei was entirely silent on what things had been like when she'd been alive.

Apparently, she was now having some nasty flashbacks.

Renji could see it in her face, in her stance, in her _reiatsu_; she was tense. Very very tense.

"Is something wrong, 4th Seat Ayanami?"

The blue-haired girl turned towards Byakuya. "No, Kuchiki-taichō, I am well," she said.

Byakuya arched a brow. "Something _is_ amiss Ayanami-san, that I can see clearly. Will you be able to safely participate in this operation?"

Kuchiki-taichō had good reason to ask, mused Renji. She had proved a prodigy in _kidō_ at the Academy, mastering Level 40 spells within the first three years and gaining proficiency in spells as high as Level 75 before graduating. Such powerful spells were often difficult for other _captains_ to cast safely, much less a 4th Seat.

Appearing nonchalant, Rei nodded.

"Hm. You are familiar with this place?" Byakuya gestured towards the shattered city below them. "Hai, I am taichō," said Rei.

'_I guess I know a bit about your past, Ayanami,_' thought Renji.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The shattered corpse of Toyko-3 wasn't much different in 2117 than it was in 2017; the only major variance was a distinct lack of looters and squatters and a small military presence.

Even still, what remained of the NERV01 Geofront was utterly deserted of all life larger than the occasional falcon.

Much of that reason was tending a mournful little melon patch with a white sword.

Many veterans of the Winter War would have thought they were seeing the 4th Espada Ulquiorra Schiffer at first glance. However, there were several difference. The most obvious was the figure's garments; the slender figure was dressed like a samurai in a bone-white _hakama_ and _gi_ with a deep purple _obi_ completing the outfit.

Second was his mask. Though the left half of it had been cracked away, what remained faintly resembled a samurai helm; the back circled around in a neckguard while the right half of the mask formed a cheekguard and a greatly extended lower jaw. On the crown, grew a single long horn. From beneath the mask grew a shock of messy brown hair.

Finally, his most striking feature; storm blue eyes stared into nothingness as he went on with his endless chore.

He looked up. Something was _there_, out there somewhere. He wasn't sure just _how_ he knew this, only that he knew that _something_ was there. Just like those rare times when he'd caught delinquents making the long climb down into the Geofront for 'souvenirs' of the 'Devil's Agency'.

Sighing to himself he concentrated, causing his body to become solid and allowing himself to physically interact with the world.

No-one would desecrate this ground. Not while he existed enough to protect it.

As he walked towards the presence, he idly pondered what he was. He distinctly remembered getting up one day, only to notice that he'd left his starved, sickly body behind.

He remembered pain, a tearing pain, and then became aware of a mask covering his face. Panicked, he'd struggled mightily, eventually tearing the mask off his face.

It was only after a week of simply _existing_ that he realized that he was well and truly alone.

He shook his head; no use reminiscing. They had all died; they died because of him and left him behind.

Even Death seemed to have abandoned Ikari Shinji.

This was his Purgatory, his _Via Delarosa_.

Suddenly, the first presence he'd sensed seemed to multiply; more than a score of others had apparently shown up. Were they that determined to desecrate this place?

A sword appeared at his waist; he didn't draw it.

He wouldn't need it. Not to put the fear of God into these interlopers.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Rei softly cursed to herself as she sprinted ahead of Abarai-fukutaichō. The Hollow had turned out to be not just a _Vasto Lorde_, but an Arrancar, judging by the panicked tone of voice that the scouts had used.

A blast of unleashed _reiatsu_ knocked her off her feet, sending herself, her squad, and Renji sprawling over silver grass.

Undaunted, Kuchiki-taichō dove into the swirling aura of dust and spirit energy, Senbonzakura flashing away in a sandstorm of razors.

"Stay _back_!" shouted Renji to the downed _shinigami_ as he struggled to stand. Columns of blue fire erupted into the sky. "This has gone beyond our level," he continued, "support if you can, but keep your distance!"

Nodding, Rei turned to her detachment. "Use bakudō, the more powerful the better and only if you get a clear shot. Slow it down enough for the 11th or the 12th to get here."

Turning her attention towards the battle, Rei concentrated her _reiatsu_, focusing it into one of her more powerful spells. "Carriage of Thunder; Bridge of a spinning wheel; With this light, divide thee into six! Bakudō 61, _R__ikujōkōrō_!"

Into the melee flashed a dozen spells, imprisoning the slender Arrancar in a storm of focused _reiatsu_, even as Zaraki-taichō finally arrived-

"_Soul cutter, God slayer._ Awaken, Longinus!"


	3. Hollow Men

**Hollow Men**

Disclaimer: If I owned this, do you honestly think either Bleach or Evangelion would have done so well?

* * *

"Oi, Byakuya."

Kuchiki Byakuya blinked. Above him he recognized the ceiling and the warm, quiet environs of the 4th Division hospital. Gingerly, he turned towards the voice.

"Kurosaki."

Hazel eyes scanned him with uncharacteristic concern. "You alright? You look worse than when I first came here."

The recuperating captain raised a wry brow. "I'm certainly breathing, am I not?"

The orange-haired _shinigami_ looked faint for several moments, prompting Byakuya to say, "Perhaps you need to see a healer yourself, Kurosaki."

Ichigo's hands found a small wooden chair, tugging it over to sit down. "I'd thought Renji had been having me on when he said you made a joke," he said after pulling his jaw back up.

The substitute _shinigami_ could easily see Byakuya trying to hide his shivers; the battle had been hard-fought. Many things had seemed to go wrong at once, his own three hours with Inoue Orihime could attest to that.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Awaken...Longinus!"

Red-orange light blasted the massive cavern that had once been the Fortress of Humanity. Dozens of _shinigami_ unfortunate enough to be too close found themselves airborne on a tsunami of air and _reiatsu_.

A chilling howl, long and low, rent the skies. It was a cry of maddened, bestial rage that made even the infamous 11th Division tremble in their zori.

Then silence. Like the calm before the storm. A maddening quiet the likes of which even the feared Espada of Las Noches would quickly lose their minds in the infinite nothingness.

Back to back, a bloodied Byakuya and the battered Zaraki scanned the still red-illumined landscape.

"You cannot escape, Arrancar," said Byakuya, his voice as level as if he were watching koi in a pond. "The Espada have been beaten before."

"Your pardon, intruder," came a light, emotionless voice.

Eyes wide in shock, Byakuya turned around to the sudden emptiness at his back.

Kenpachi Zaraki, the most feared warrior amongst the Gotei 13, lay in spatters of his own blood on the ground. Above him stood a short, slender figure in white. In his hand was a red lance with two prongs. "My sincerest apologies, but I have never heard of Espada before."

Green eyes burned beneath a mask of nightmares. Deep ebony streaked with white, it was like the visage of a beast, of a human devolved to the basest of creatures.

_'Oni...'_

The 6th Division captain quickly _shun-po_ed away, releasing Senbonzakura. A sandstorm of flower petal-like shards of power shot towards the stoic arrancar.

With nary a blink, the former Third Child brought Longinus up in a vertical slash. Reality itself seemed to bend and twist, distorting into nothingness along the axis of his attack. The black light of the Void of Dirac easily intercepted and engulfed the shards of Senbonzakura.

The 6th Captain's eyes widened.

"The dead rest here," said the arrancar. "and defilers will _not be tolerated_."

"Then may this blighted place be cleansed of your presence," Byakuya answered coldly. "_Bankai; Senbonzakura Kageyoshi_."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"...and so the last thing you remember is Zaraki getting up again?"

In a testament to his legendary constitution, Byakuya remained awake enough to nod weakly before speaking. "You're awakening me, saying the battle was over, was the next thing I remember."

"Kuchiki-taichō!" A young woman in a 4th Division uniform burst into the small room. "Kuchiki-taichō! You're supposed to be _resting_!" The bedridden 6th Division captain gave her a cool glance. It was a glance that could reduce most _shinigami_ to fearful, quivering masses. This little nurse let it slide away like rain off a duck's back before returning fire with a glare of her own, under which Kuchiki Byakuya, unshakable captain of the 6th Division seemed to shrink.

Her patient suitably cowed, she turned to the stunned Ichigo. "And who are _you_?"

Thrown off-balance, Ichigo could only sputter at the short freckled girl with the pigtails. "I-I-I-er-eto..." Kami! He'd thought Unohana's glare only came once to a dimension!

The woman huffed in exasperation. "Never mind; were you bothering my patient?" Big brown eyes bore into him like his father's flu shots.

"Nononononononononono! I-I-I-I was j-just visiting, m-ma'am," said Ichigo, waving his arms while his face was slowly greening with sick panic.

The woman eyed him for another tense minute before subtly deflating. "Then it's alright," she said in a perky voice. "Just don't take too long, okay? There are many more injured and I have to be available for emergencies-"

"Horaki-san! Horaki-san!"

Turning, an annoyed scowl appeared on the nurse's face. "Kuchiki-san! The injured need their peace to effectively heal," she hissed.

Rukia had enough presence of mind to look suitably abashed. "G-gomen, Horaki-san."

The nurse smiled. "You can call me Hikari-san if you want. I know he's your brother," she said quietly. She patted Rukia lightly on the shoulder.

Rukia smiled gratefully to Hikari as she entered the small room. Her smile quickly turned to surprise when she noticed the room's second occupant. "Ichigo? What are you doing here?"

Scratching the back of his neck, the bleach-haired shinigami substitute sighed. "Apparently, 6th and 11th Divisions and elements of the 12th were deployed to capture a rogue arrancar and found themselves in over their heads. Boy, when Toshirō got everyone back, he looked ready to start the next ice age."

Rukia was of two minds about this turn of events. On the one hand, a rogue arrancar was bad news to pretty much everyone and immediate action was generally the best option against such threats. On the other, going against an _arrancar_ without tactical support from 10th Division? Especially with their new 5th seat. While the woman was disturbingly similar to Matsumoto-fukutaichō, she certainly knew how to govern a battle with impossible odds!

Shaking her head, Rukia found a chair. "So, what happened?"

Mindful of the now-sleeping Byakuya, Ichigo continued. "Well, Rangiku-san had me meet her at Urahara Shoten with Yoruichi-san and opened the _senkaimon_. When we get there, I felt like I'd walked into a freezer!"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Kurosaki, Shihoin. You're here."

Shivering lightly from the unexpected temperature, Ichigo nodded. Yoruichi also nodded, unaffected by the temperature. In the center of the courtyard stood Hitsugaya Toshirō, Captain of the 10th Division, a frosty mist wafting off of him. With Matsumoto in their company, the entire 10th Division was now gathered before the _senkaimon_.

If the mist wasn't a sign of frustrated anger, the little taichō's words were.

"I'll make this quick," said Hitsugaya. "Nearly three hours ago, 6th, 11th, and 12th Divisions were dispatched to a classified location." He gestured at the senkaimon before continuing. "They were dispatched to suppress and apprehend or neutralize a rogue arrancar." He paused at the collective gasp that his audience let escape. "How we missed its development and presence, I am at a loss to explain. However, our forces were sent without _any_ sort of surveillence from the 2nd and tactical oversight from us!" He pointed towards the still-open interdimensional gate. "The Winter War has cost us dearly and we _cannot_ afford to lose three full divisions because of a hasty decision!"

Hitsugaya turned towards an unfamiliar woman with purple hair. "5th Seat Katsuragi, you are to coordinate with 4th Division to evacuate and take care of the wounded. I'm leaving you in charge of 10th Division while I'm gone."

The woman snapped a smart salute that spoke of years of military training. "Hai, taichō!"

"All shinigami in 4th squad and higher are to come with me! Kurosaki! You and Shihoin engage the arrancar and ascertain its strength; kill it if possible, distract it if not."

With that, 10th Division split up to go about their assigned duties and the cream of 10th Division plus two entered the _senkaimon_.

They arrived to utter bedlam.

Injured and bleedng shinigami from all three divisions lay everywhere. Giant rents in the surrounding environment like a Titan from the heavens had taken a massive set of Tiger's Claws to it marked both the ground and the metallic walls of the immense cavern. A sound like metallic thunder boomed across the blasted landscape as the yellow bead of light that was Zaraki-Taichō clashed with the arrancar...

...and by the smell, Kurotsuchi-Taichō had just released his bankai.

"Kurotsuchi! No!"

The warning came too late as Konjiki Ashisogi Jizō encircled the pair, spewing its foul venomous breath.

Despite his great strength, even Zaraki Kenpachi, mightiest warrior of the Soul Society, staggered under Jizō's poisonous assault. The arrancar didn't.

A red light flashed, bringing a burning chill in its wake. For the second time that day, Zaraki fell.

"Spread out! Don't give it an easy target! Sit upon the frozen heavens." Having done what he could, Hitsugaya entered shikai.

"Kurosaki! Go all out and keep moving! Shihoin, assist where you can. Between you two, I want that thing paralyzed-"

The world went bright as Heaven struck the earth with the force of a nuclear war.

A column of white-hot plasma rose like a cross into a suddenly dark sky.

Ichigo panted heavily, having just barely deflected the blast in time. In his hand, Tensa Zangetsu trembled from his fatigue.

"GO!!"

10th Division scattered. Yoruichi darted out towards the arrancar. In that time, Ichigo donned his Hollow mask once more before joining Yoruichi in her furious assault on the arrancar.

While the Goddess of Flash and her onetime student fought the arrancar, Hitsugaya raced around, looking for the few remaining conscious shinigami. Amongst the first he found was the blue-haired 4th Seat of the 6th.

Nearly a score of shinigami later, Hitsugaya instructed them on how to take down a Vasto Lordes.

"Are you all proficient in Bakudo?" At their nods, he continued. "Be very careful and aim between us. Use the most powerful bindings you know when I tell you!" Realasing Hyorinmaru's bankai, he raced in to join the three combatants.

By this time, both Ichigo and Yoruichi were covered in bruises and cuts. This particular arrancar was _fast_; well beyond even Zommari's speed! Not only that, but Ichigo in particular learned early on to avoid that odd twin-pronged spear; Tensa Zangetsu had already lost nearly a foot when he'd tried to block. Desperate, he darted back and launched a cero at the arrancar.

As he expected, it bounced off an invisible wall more than five feet in front of the creature. He nearly grinned as Yoruichi and Hitsugaya dove in towards the arrancar, taking advantage of its distraction.

Because he was flying, Hitsugaya struck first, causing the arrancar to freeze. Unfortunately, as Yoruichi closed in, the ice flashed-vaporised in a massive steam explosion.

The steam cleared, revealing a stunned Hitsugaya and an unconscious Yoruichi. Leviling his weapon at Ichigo, the arrancar prepared to charge.

21 high level binding spells hit the arrancar, causing it to freeze in place momentarily. As the spells dissolved, it dawned on Ichigo that this arrancar was far different than the ones he'd helped deal with before.

Annoyed, the arrancar slowly turned towards the source of the spells, even as other flew towards him. In a blink, he was only yards away from them, easily within his spear's reach. Readying his weapon, he stopped. Her weapon ready, she stood between her comrades and certain oblivion, zanpakuto drawn. She was trembling, that he could see. Her crimson eyes were calm, at peace, even while staring death in the face.

He dropped the lance in his shock. She'd returned? Returned to this cursed ground? Returned to a world that reviled her? Returned to the very thing that killed her? Breath came shallowly as he found the presence of mind to whisper one word.

"...Rei..."

"GETSUGA TENSHO!!"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw it. A black mass like a crescent moon, racing towards him and the shinigami behind him. Racing towards Rei...

On instinct, the arrancar threw himself in front of the oncoming wave of power. He would protect her! He would not let her die he-

Silence.

* * *

Author's Notes:

Alowl is quite right in saying that Ikari-san is unlike any arrancar that the shinigami have faced before. For one, he was once an EVA pilot. EVAs are products of _mortals'_ research into the nature of the soul. One of the side effects are Shinji's being able to use his AT field.

Second, his soul is totally his own; unlike a traditional Vasto Lorde, who must consume millions of other Hollows, Shinji awoke to his postmortum state already as a Vasto Lorde.

Thirdly, he is very much the same to when he was alive. Relatively speaking, of course.

Finally, the Lancea Longini itself is his weapon; a weapon that can pierce any guard, any barrier of the soul. That includes zanpakuto.

As for other NGE charas? Misato is mentioned briefly in this chapter, as is Hikari. As for the others...you'll just have to wait and see. Hehehehe.

I will say this, however. Shinji will be the only one who Hollowed.


	4. Cruel Angel's Thesis

**Cruel Angel's Thesis**

Dislclaimer: I own nuthin'.

* * *

She sighed, gratefully putting down her pen and notepad. It had been a long day of work for both her and her patient; being the most stoic and tolerant man she'd ever worked with her life didn't help him with the therapy she was putting him through. Looking up, she absently noted that the sun was shining. The scientist in idly her wondered how exactly did the sun shine in what was effectively a land of the dead. Not that it felt appropriate. Ever since she'd arrived, she had been searching for her Treasure, her raison d'etre, the reason why she had sacrificed herself to her very own Frankenstein's Monster.

"Ikari!"

The woman stopped in the mostly vacant hallway. She looked up at her addressee with an icy glare. Green eyes like Hitsugaya-Taichō's worst moods lanced out at the one who addressed her.

Kurotsuchi Mayuri-Taichō visibly flinched.

"Yes, taichō?"

Shaking his head, Mayuri started in on the woman. "Why aren't you at your station? The testing of the artificial souls won't run th-"

"They are perfectly capable of running themselves taichō," interrupted the woman. "I was over in 4th Division for the gene therapy for Ukitake-Taichō. Something I had informed you of numerous times already?" She raised a brow.

Mayuri fumed. "These experiments are _important_ Ikari; whatever you're doing in the 4th can wait!"

"What I _am_ doing is working to restore one of Seiretei's strongest captains to fighting condition," the woman said coldly. "Your obstructing that process could be considered _treasonous_."

Mayuri jerked as if slapped. Treasonous!? The very _idea_! For a moment, he gaped at the accusation.

"If you're quite done, I have to return to my offi-"

"Don't take that tone with me, Ikari!" Mayuri growled, getting up into her face. "I am taichō of 12th Division and you _will_ follow my orders!" With that, Mayuri continued on his way, slowly disappearing into the gloom.

She sighed in frustration. She'd never had this problem when she had been alive!

She slowly made her way to the 5th Seat office and apartment, her current home. The past century had been relatively kind to her and her new friends. After waking up in Rukongai, she'd learned enough to start a small medicinal practice. She'd done that for what felt like three years before she'd found herself in the Shinigami Academy. Apparently, one of her patients had been a minor noble and a captain of one of the 13 Divisions of the Court Guard and had sponsored her entry. On top of that, who should she run into on her first day but her old teacher, Fuyutsuki Kozo.

To make a long story short, she'd graduated near the top of her class; decent with zanjutsu but a prodigy with kido and hakuda. Finally, she had to choose a division. Split between the 4th and the 12th, she eventually chose the 12th; while she was all for practicing medicine, she was somewhat less enthusiastic about cleaning sewers. As a Shinigami, she had eventually met up with the Children of Tokyo-3 as they called themselves: Rei, Asuka, Toji and his sister, Kensuke, Hikari and her sisters, and Mana. She'd also come to know Misato, Ritsuko, Kaji, Maya, Makoto, and Aoba, who had all become Shinigami after 3rd Impact.

Finally reaching her office, she quickly entered, shutting the door and locking it, as if to lock out the rest of the world.

Her reactions to them were varied, but friendly; in a way, Shinji's synchronizing with EVA-01 had given her a decent idea of what each of them were like while they'd been alive. More than a few them had been surprised to see her when she had initially introduced herself. Understandable, really; it was one thing to know that restless spirits sometimes ended up in Soul Society, even those from long past, but to see someone you never expected to see–for lack of a better term–_alive_?

Then she'd met _him_. After decades of festering in a personal oblivion, only faint sensations of moments her only solace. In the time since he'd arrived, Rokobunji Gendo had also become a Shinigami eventually being chosen for the 2nd Division.

It had hardly been a _happy_ reunion for them; for all his devotion to her, his loyalty, his obsession with her, he'd forsaken the very thing that had given her happiness. As such, Yui had given him some choice words (and bruises) about his treatment of her little Treasure.

But the one reason for her perseverance, the one reason for her finding the strength of will to survive beyond Evangelion.

Her little one was nowhere to be found.

For years, decades, a whole generation, she had searched every nook and cranny of Soul Society that she had access to. In that time, her son had never appeared.

Ikari Shinji had never made it into Soul Society.

In the cold desolace of her office, Ikari Yui broke down and wept.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Rei sat down blankly on the chair, her mind whirling away in confusion.

Why?

Why did that Arrancar seem so familiar?

And why did he not use the abilities that were commonly associated with Hollows? From what she remembered, the Arrancar had apparently not made any use of _cero_, and only apparently unconscious use of _sonido_. Oddly enough, it hadn't seemed to have any _hierro_ at all, particularly when it intercepted Kurosaki-san's Getsuga Tensho; it had nearly cut through him.

"Oi, Wondergirl!"

She looked up towards the approaching redhead. Nearly a week had passed since their effort to capture the Arrancar; in that time, Rei had spent the first two days in 4th Division, as Asuka had several days prior, breaking up an 11th Division bar brawl.

Rumor had it that Aramaki _still_ had a black eye.

"Soryu,"said Rei, looking up at her guest. Asuka blinked.

"Geez Rei, what's with that blank look? I haven't seen that since Tokyo-3."

"This," answered Rei, her hand resting on a long, wrapped object sitting next to her. Asuka blinked.

"I didn't know you were interested in the lance, Rei," said Asuka, sitting down next to her friend.

"Ice-Shard-of-Night is a naginata, Soryu. A lance is not so different."

"Wow, Rei! You already achieved shikai?"

Asuka turned towards the newcomer, a bright smile on her face. "Mana! I thought you were still sparring with Madarame-san." A big shit-eating grin appeared on Asuka's face. "Are you telling me Kirishima Mana, former JSSDF covert operative, giant robot pilot, and 10th Seat of 11th Division, has yet to achieve shikai?"

"Asuka!!" Loosing an indignant screech, Mana blushed as everyone in the little ramen house turned to look at the three of them. "Ehehe, sorry."

"No Asuka, I _haven't_ achieved shikai, thank you very much! Which is pretty par for the course for being a Shinigami for a few months!"

Asuka winced at the embarassed hiss. "Sorry, Mana. I forgot that you didn't apply until long after we did."

"Yeah Red, don't forget that Zaraki-Taichō actually _hugged_ her," came a male voice from over Mana's shoulder. Said former agent squeaked in surprise.

Asuka growled as the short-haired young man sat down at their table with a cup of green tea. "That and she kicked 3rd Seat Madarame's ass in bare-handed combat." Remembering good times, Suzuhara Touji chuckled. "Heh, to think we'd have paid a fortune to live like this when we were alive."

"Can it, Stooge!"

"Bite me, Red."

"Thanks no, I'd probably get hives."

"What was that?!"

"Oh get a room you two," came another newcomer.

"Oh great! Stooge number two," griped Asuka as Aida Kensuke sat down next to Touji. "So Rei, what do you think?" he whispered to the unusually quiet girl.

Taking a shallow sip Rei put down her cup, setting it gently on the laquer table. Her hands were shaking, shivering as if exposed to arctic chill.

Touji's eyes widened as she sipped, his jaw dropping as he smelled the liquid. "Rei? Are you _drinking_?" He glanced at the innocuous wrappings lying next to the cushion she sat upon. "Just what the hell _is_ it, then?"

Gently, she placed her hand on the wrapped object. A low, subsonic rumble made itself known. In a panic, many of the restaurant's other patrons swiftly vacated the premises. The Children of Tokyo-3 only sat in terrified awe.

"This is _the_ Lance. The Lance that He held." Her quiet voice wavered, a poignant counterpoint to the bandages peeking out from under her _shihakusho_. Slowly, she turned to Kensuke. "Where did you get this?"

"Let's just say that if Kurotsuchi-taichō finds out I took this, he will _ass-rape_ me," said the bespectacled man. He shivered at the thought. "And I won't even _mention_ what Yamamoto-Sotaichō will do to me if he finds out."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The ceiling. It was the first thing he noticed, lying there on the bed. It wasn't familiar.

But then, they rarely were for the former Third Child.

He was dimly aware that there were several dozen..._things_...sticking out from obviously artificial openings in his body.

Nothing unfamiliar.

It had been in June of 2016 when they first cut him open. "For the good of the human race" they told him. The smug hatred on their faces brought it all home.

_He_ had become the enemy of humanity.

At least the others were no longer around to see it, having moved on to their well-earned rest in 3rd Impact. They'd eventually lost interest in him, literally throwing him to the dogs.

For a little over a year, he'd simply existed as nothing more than just another scavenger in the City of Death.

And then he'd died, slowly fading from hunger and thirst. At least he had lay down for what seemed an innocent nap.

When he awoke, he wasn't what he was when he first closed his eyes.

But that was then; this was now. And it looked a lot like NERV-01 Medical Division's med-lab, where he'd wake up after fighting the angels.

A soft tone sounded to his right; a small light blinked on a machine he didn't recognize.

And then the door slid open.

In the doorway stood a willowy young woman. Pleasantly formed, her shortened kimono accentuating her long, slender legs. Large, dark eyes were like those of a deer, or a rather attractive 'Bridge Bunny'. Eyes which spoke of a tainted innocence.

"H-hello?" Had he felt capable, he would have grimaced; his voice came out scratchy and weak, like a vinyl record left to rot for a year in the rain and snow. "Hello? Are you a nurse?"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Kurotsuchi Nemu was taken aback by the Arrancar's quiet civility. According to past experience, Arrancar were highly dangerous, hyper-evolved Hollows that consumed everything and anything in their path; this particular Arrancar was acting uncharacteristically submissive for a being so powerful. Not only that, but it apparently had a human-like awareness of its surroundings that seemed to include the idea of the modern medical assistant people the world over called 'nurses'.

"No, I am not," said the woman. She gently ruffled his short hair, a dark brown in color. She didn't know why, but it felt natural. The Arrancar's breathing slowed as he relaxed with the gentle contact.

"Sorry," he said with a sigh.

Nemu retracted her hand. Odd, it felt...cold, uncomfortable, now that it was no longer touching the quiet Arrancar. "Now that you are awake, I shall fetch 6th Seat Akagi; she has been authorized to study you.

He started, almost sitting up in the bed. "Akagi? You know Dr. Akagi?"

The petite 12th Division fukutaichō nodded at the Arrancar. "Dr. Akagi will be here momentarily."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"I have an odd feeling about this, Taichō."

Hitsugaya glanced up from his desk at his 5th Seat, a thoughtful frown on his face. "I know, Katsuragi. Yamamato-Sotaichō has classified all information on this unusual Arrancar and its place of origin." He scowled, putting down his writing brush. "An entire _world_ had died there! With so much death all at once any Hollows forming there may born as a Menos! Shouldn't at least the captains have access to the information?" He scratched his chin. "Where did we go, anyway?"

"With all due respect taichō, why don't you tell me? You had me busy coordinating with 4th Division," said Misato as she looked up from her notepad. She glanced at it again with a frown. The capture op had been a disaster from the first! Working with Unohana-taichō and the 4th, they were lucky that there hadn't been more casualties. If she were only a lieutenant or a Captain, she'd give the old man running this place a piece of her mind!

But the strangest thing had been Rei. Out of all the Shinigami that had participated in the capture attempt, Rei had gotten off the lightest. For a given value of lightest, since she still needed a full ten minutes with that Orihime girl, another two days in recovery, and was still in bandages nearly a week later. Even with the constitution of a large iceberg, Hitsugaya had been forced to endure four days of repeated sessions with the redheaded human girl.

His resulting temper hat yet to *ahem* cool.

Eyebrow twitching, Hitsugaya turned to his sometimes-flighty 5th Seat; for all of her tactical and operational genius, Katsuragi Misato was disturbingly similar to his fukutaichō, Matsumoto Rangiku. It was only a moment before he forced his temper down; for all of her irritating qualities, Katsuragi had a good reason to ask, for knowledge was power on the battlefield.

"The _senkaimon_ opened in what I can only describe as a giant hole in the ground," he said after awhile, his eyes distant. He shivered. "It was as if the Earth itself had Hollowed."

As he was talking, Hitsugaya didn't notice Misato freezing, her eyes riveting themselves to him. There was only one place she knew of that could even vaguely resemble Hitsugaya's description.

"Katsuragi? Katsuragi?" Twitching, Misato snapped out of her daze. "Katsuragi, this sounds familiar to you?"

The purple-haired woman nodded somberly. "Its where I died," she answered.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Did you dye your hair?"

Puzzled, the auburn-haired woman looked up at her subject. Even with a dozen holes cut in it and scores of probes and sensors sticking out of it, the Arrancar seemed immune to the resultant pain. Yet he was still conscious enough to make note of his surroundings, up to and including recognizing people. How interesting.

"No, I haven't." She raised a brow.

The Arrancar seemed to shrink down somewhat. "Sorry. You...look like someone I know," it said quietly.

The woman briskly went over to one of a number of machines, reading off information and jotting notes. Brown eyes quickly scanned the data, no reaction escaping her professional demeanor. "I see."

For several minutes, the only sound was pen on paper and the beeping of the numerous electronic devices in the room.

Finally, the Arrancar spoke in a soft voice. "Did we beat it?"

Curious, the woman glanced at her subject. Going by the glaze over its eyes, it wasn't _entirely_ conscious. "Beat what?"

"The angel."

The pen stopped as if frozen, leaving a jagged tear in the paper. Time seemed to stop for Dr. Akagi Naoko as her consciousness tunneled down to one semi-conscious Arrancar on a restraining bed.

"Is everyone else okay?" continued the weak voice, oblivious to the good doctor's mental shock. "Where's Rei and Asuka? Are they here too?"

The good doctor's mood instantly darkened at the mention of her ex-lover's little toy. Thanks to that damn proposal from 10th Division, she had to deal with the little bitch every week. Not even death was a respite from that reminder of her failure!

'_He must have been from Tokyo-3,_' the more logical part of her thought as she tried to rein in her more vengeful nature. So she had a rather fractured personality; it wasn't like Kurotsuchi-Taichō or Zaraki-Taichō were the most sane examples of people, right? Blame that Gendo and his little blue doll of his for her three-part personality!

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"N-nani? What is that?" asked the strawberry-blonde woman as she looked at the long object in Rei's hand. She could _feel_ it, weighing on her soul like an endless ocean of nothingness, calling to her to _unite_, to _merge with the One-Who-Is-All.._

Rangiku Matsumoto shook herself before scooting away. What was that thing!?! She had walked in just as everyone had run out screaming; just as Kensuke had begun to explain exactly _where_ he'd gotten the odd artifact. "You _stole_ this from Kurotsuchi?" She turned to the sandy blond man in glasses, an incredulous look on her face. Kensuke winced.

"Weeell, I wouldn't say _stole_..."

Matsumoto still gaped at the artifact as Rei slowly unwrapped it. Slowly, the distinctive crimson helix of the Lance of Longinus was revealed, its concealment removed. Save Rei, Matsumoto, and Kensuke, the gathered Children gasped in awed terror.

Even growing up in the harsher districts of Rukongai, Matsumoto new enough about this infamous Lance to know that whoever wielded Longinus had the powers of Genesis and Entropy at their fingertips. Had the traitor Aizen known about this...

The Children jumped their cell phones started buzzing in their pockets; most Shinigami never bothered to use their phones in Soul Society, whereas the Children never put them down.

"Major. What is it?" asked Rei, who'd picked up first. Rei nodded for several minutes as she listened to Misato, intermittently speaking. "Yes, all the Children are here." Rei nodded, glancing at the still-silent Rangiku "Matsumoto-fukutaichō is here as well," she said, eyes narrowing slightly. Both Mana and Kensuke let out a gulp; aside from Shinji Misato and Yui, no-one could read Rei's expressions better than they could. They knew that whatever was going down, it was going to be _serious_ business.

"Hai, we'll be there." The small _clack!_ of the phone's closing was like a thunderclap in the silence.

"The Major and Hitsugaya-Taichō have requested our presence," said Rei as she turned to the assembled Children of Tokyo-3, giving a nod to the now-serious Rangiku. "They have found something pertaining to the recent expedition to suppress the rogue Arrancar."

"Ive kinda been wonderin' about somethin," said Touji as he stood, getting ready to meet with the 10th Division captain. "Where did you guys _go_ anyways?"

"Tokyo-3."

* * *

Author's Notes:

Another couple months, another chapter.

But seriously folks, this isn't like thowing words onto a page. My muses are frequently turning up AWOL nowadays, as they seem to be out whenever I sit down to write. At any rate, I'll try to answer your comments and critiques as best I can.

To All:

Yes, Shinji the Arrancar _is_ a bit OP; as the focus of 3rd Impact, I think he would be! According to SEELE, 3rd Impact was supposed to elevate them to the level of the Gods on High; seeing as Rei pretty much told both the Old Men _and _Gendo to piss off, I think Shinji got the lions share of it. Basically, he's a Divine Seed right now.

And honestly? It was Shinji's tragic circumstances at EOE that made me thing he'd make a perfect Hollow.

To 6th Child:

Both the issues of conversation and chapter length _are_ concerns of mine. I want the characters to sound genuine. However, I have to try and factor in the facts that they are dead, are a century older and wiser, and have gone though Soul Society in general and Seireitai in particular; all that plus their experiences as Shinigami are going to alter their perceptions to variying degrees.

As far as length goes? All I can do there is just crank 'em out and hope for the best.

To Venomancer:

As you saw in this chapter, Asuka is *ahem* alive and mostly well, having shrugged off an 11th Division bar brawl. As for Unit01? I have _plans_ for that one. Heheheheheheheh! Actually, to answer both yours and Genisyn69's question regarding Unit01... What? You actually thought I'd tell you at this stage in the game?! Psh!

To James Ray's Guardian:

Thank you! That was _exactly_ what I was trying to accomplish. Good to see I'm doing _something_ right!

To Alowl:

Shinji didn't block Ichigo's Getsuga because of two things. First, Ichigo was in overdrive, his mask up and putting his all into that particular attack. Secondly, Shinji wasn't thinking as a Hollow would at that moment; he knows AT Fields, but only on an unconscious level. He was thinking _human_, and _humans_ can't block an energy attakc bare-handed.

As you can see from the chapter, Shinji _did_ survive, if a little battered. He also has his first run-in with one Dr. _Naoko_ Akagi, a woman who has a serious grudge against his mother (Yui), Rei, and him by extension.

And talking? A Shinigami to an Arrancar. No _way_ is Yama-ji going to allow that; gotta keep tradition and all!

To Invincible Shinji:

We've traded a few emails, so you already have some of my thought process down. I _will_ say that Ch4 is going to get a _little interesting_ for the Shinigami, and Shinji himself.

To Fifth Horseman:

Yeah, there's no Shinigami in all of Soul Society that could stop Shinji if he _really_ wanted to break some heads. Lucky for them, Shinji isn't like that.

As far as Hikari goes, I thought that Unohana could use a little assistance with keeping those rowdy 11th Shinigami in line, and Hikari fits the bill _perfectly_. Not to mention the occaisional captain or lieutenant that needs some additional persuasion to stay in bed.

As for Misato? I put her in the 10th because she herself is something of a prodigy, and prodigies do well with intellectual tasks like tactics and strategy; I figured her similarity to Matsumoto was a comedic bonus!

And Rei? The albino female Byakuya? She's perfect for Kido in my mind.

Next up in Ch4:

The special significance of 3rd Impact to Seireitai is revealed!

The Bridge Bunnies get in on the act, as well as the other NERV01 adults.

Yui gets a nasty surprise!

Shinji gets told something he doesn't like. Look out soul Society!


	5. Ode to Joy

**Ode to Joy**

Disclaimer: EVA pwns me; Bleach pwns me; hell, this story pwns me!

* * *

"Thank you all for coming," said Hitsugaya as he surveyed the gathered Shinigami. There was quite the varied group gathered there in front of his desk. The so-called "Children of Tokyo-3" were the foremost of the group; Rei of 6th, Asuka, Touji and Mana of 11th, and Kensuke of 12th. There were also a number of adults present; chiefly Dr. Akagi Ritsuko of 12th and Fuyutski Kozo of the 13th. All were apprehensive, as it was rare to be summoned to conference by the captain of the Special Tactics Division. Finally rounding out the group was Katsuragi Misato and Matsumoto Rangiku.

All were gathered to discuss just _why_ this Tokyo-3 place mattered so much.

"I will start off with this question," said Hitsugaya. "What happened to Tokyo-3 to make it look like such a disaster?"

"The world died there," answered Fuyutski after clearing his throat. "As did we all." He gestured to everyone besides Hitsugaya and Rangiku in the office. "When 3rd Impact occurred, the world was to be reborn as predicted in the Dead Sea Scrolls." He reached into a satchel by his side, pulling out a collection of worn parchments. "Obviously, these aren't the originals," he went on as he gave them to the child captain, "but these were the notes I made from what I remembered of them after coming here."

"Invasion?" asked Hitsugaya as he skimmed over the scrolls. His brow furrowed as he read.

"The Japanese Strategic Self-Defense Force was authorized to take Tokyo-3 by storm to gain control of NERV by forceful occupation."

Hitsugaya nodded. A sizable fraction of the newer Shinigami had come from Tokyo-3, and had worked at this "world-saving" organization called NERV. He read in silence for several minutes, his gaze narrowing as he read on, like a dragon preparing for battle.

"This NERV was never intended to save the world, was it?" he said quietly. It was inconceivable! That _anyone_ could try something so foolish! So disruptive to the cosmic order!

_How could Soul Society have missed this?_

"That is correct."

Hitsugaya looked up from the scrolls. Rei had finally spoken up, sitting in silence on the couch, an odd wrapped object in her lap.

"NERV was never intended to prevent Impact," said Rei. "It was intended to gather the necessary components and initialize the process of Instrumentality. The Rapid Evolution Initiative, Project R.E.I., was designed to create a means of controlling Impact."

The frosty captain raised a brow at the girl. "That's a rather interesting acronym, Ayanami-san. I take it that's a rather touchy subject to you?" Rei silently nodded.

The door slid open suddenly, causing some people to jump. In walked a man with a plain black haori and a bad haircut, his zanpakuto loose at his waist.

Misato growled. "Kaji. What are you doing here?"

Scratching the back of his neck, Kaji loosed a laid-back grin. "Sorry I'm late folks. SoiFon-Taichō kept me a little longer than I'd planned."

"Trying to work your way up?" Misato asked, her left eye twitching. Everyone knew that Kaji was just a 2nd grunt.

"Nah, I like everything intact and right were they are, thanks. Besides, she's still mooning after Shinhoin." he said, his grin still in place.

Hitsugaya examined the stubble-faced man. While the moron was still her fukutaichō, SoiFon had finally replaced Omaeda as her lieutenant in the Onmitskido. And for all his devil-may-care attitude, scuttlebutt said that the man was magnitudes beyond his predecessor as what Katsuragi called a 'covert operator'. Especially since that apparently no-one had found out yet of Kaji's placement as 2IC of the Onmitskido.

Of course, Misato didn't say anything else, which made Hitsugaya suspicious. By now, he'd already sussed out that they had once been in a close personal relationship with each other, and that they had later split up. "So Kaji-san, what interest do you hold here?" he asked. Considering his suspicions about the man's past, Hitsugaya felt that blunt was probably the best approach with the man.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Kaji raised a brow. So _this_ was the prodigy captain of the 10th. He didn't look like much; then again, Shinji hadn't looked like much either. Poor kid, getting set up to fall like that; didn't sit with him at all. Sure, he'd made some bad choices, but the 3rd Child had been innocent; sculpted and molded to _want_ to die, so he could take the rest of the world with him.

He also knew about both the Winter war and that mess with the dispute over Hyorinmaru awhile back; he might be somewhat new to the job, but Hitsugaya had _definitely_ proved himself beyond a doubt in Kaji's book.

And _that_ meant the unvarnished truth.

"There were many people involved in 3rd Impact, Hitsugaya-Taichō," he finally said, "more than just NERV. Hundreds of thousands from all over the world believed at one point or another that they had a stake in the Apocalypse." He dropped his head slightly. "Not proud to say I was one of them."

Hitsugaya's gaze narrowed. Quietly, Kaji swallowed a nervous lump in his throat. "I was just a Special Inspector; not very high up." Hitsugaya's brow rose. "Basically, I was a watchdog, my job being to make sure things stayed on track."

Hitsugaya leveled a skeptical glare at the ex-triple agent. "So your job was to keep this...3rd Impact going the way it was supposed to go?"

"More like I was a mole, an informant," said Kaji. "I would pass along what I observed to the Japanese Ministry of the Interior and the UN Security Council."

"And NERV was supposedly unaware of this?"

Kaji shrugged. "Officially, I was there at the behest of the UN as a go-between for NERV and the Security Council. Unofficially, I was SEELE's eyes and ears on NERV operations."

"SEELE," said Hitsugaya, testing the word. "German for 'soul', yes?" He snorted. "Not very subtle, were they?"

Kaji shrugged. "As far as names? No, not really. Actions? If Aizen hadn't been soul-born, I'd have said that at least one council member was related to him."

"So, power then?" said Hitsugaya.

"Sums them up pretty nicely."

Behind his desk Hitsugaya closed his eyes, deep in thought.

"What I am about to tell you," he said finally, "is not to leave this room." He gestured briefly, activating spells to seal his office.

"Only a few hours ago, Yamamoto-Sōtaichō granted me access to a little-used, highly restricted section of the Archives. To my surprise, it contained references to a reference to an ancient ritual. A ritual, he said, had a great deal to do with the Royal Key."

Matsumoto flinched, gray eyes coming alight with worry. She remembered all too clearly the incident in which her captain had been briefly branded a traitor, to be hunted down and executed. But wait...the Royal Key? What did destroying a world have to do with the Royal Key? Just to create one required 100,000 souls...

"Ah, and now you see Matsumoto," said Hitsugaya, seeing shock race over his Lieutenant's face. "Kaji-san; what were the estimated number of casualties of 2nd Impact?"

Kaji scratched his stubble. "From what I remember, a hair over 3 billion people. What are you saying?"

"I'll get to that in a moment," said Hitsugaya. "Now tell me, what were the exact casualties from 3rd Impact? I _know_ you know this, Kaji-san, and I'm well aware of your less-than-legal trips to your world."

"Hey, somebody had to cover Tokyo-3 when the shit hit the fan," said Kaji, nonplussed. "Anyways, the stuff I got into said the final tally was about two-and-a-sixth billion."

"So, what do you get when you add the two figures together, Kaji-san?"

"Psh! That's easy, you'd get 5 billion, 167 million..."

A spark of insight hit Kaji, its implications making the hardened former-agent weak in the knees. He swallowed dryly, coming to grips with his realization. "Y-you mean to tell me...the Old Men _weren't_ bullshitting? That they really _could_ have become gods?"

"That's exatly what I'm saying, Kaji-san," said Hitsugaya, noting the horror and shock making itself known on the other's faces.

"Then the Angels..." started Rei, cradling that odd object to her.

"Were alike unto Hollows on a scale beyond what was believed possible,"said Hitsugaya, rising from his seat. "They represented the power Aizen craved."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"I'm still not sure about this..."

"Go on Shirō-chan," urged Kyoraku Shunsui, captain of 8th Division. "It's not like you've got anything to lose."

Friend of old and fellow captain, Ukitake Jushirō felt his cheeks undergo a heat-wave as a deep blush made itself known. "But it's not like that!"

Shunsui gave his friend a look of the 'I-don't-believe-you-and-you-don't-either' variety. "Suuure Shirō-chan, keep telling yourself that." He patted Ukitake's shoulder.

"And just what are you saying?" he asked, still flustered from Shunsui's suggestion.

"What I'm saying is that you – yes _you_ Shirō-chan, and don't deny it – have a crush on the good Dr. Ikari."

Ukitake sputtered, not quite willing to admit his friend was right. That didn't mean he wasn't, though; Dr. Ikari had a classic Japanese beauty augmented by green eyes, a rarity amongst Japanese. As for the woman beneath the flesh, it was like walking into sunlight after a lifetime of chill rain. Smart enough to make 5th Seat in the 12th Division, and yet looked after younger or newer Shinigami as if they were her own children. He could easily imagine the woman as a clan matriarch, given the way she looked out for Nemu when her 'father' was particularly cross.

He often wondered, in his idle moments, if Dr. Ikari and Unohana-Taichō were related, seeing as she could even intimidate SoiFon-Taichō and Zaraki-Taichō with a glare. Much less Kurotsuchi-Taichō, who generally avoided his 5th Seat when he could. Seeing as Dr. Ikari as nearly as much a prodigy as Hitsugaya-Taichō, this was a rare feat for Kurotsuchi, especially since Dr. Ikari was his leading researcher into new soul-tech gadgets and gigai.

But one thing he noticed above all else is the woman's constant melancholy. Almost every time he saw her, she was looking off into the distance, as if she was looking for something. Or someone. He almost shook his head, the 'baka' echoing in his brain. She'd said many time that she had a son, a child for who she had sacrificed everything; of course she would look for him.

Apparently, the child had never made it into Soul Society.

He would never admit it, but he had made some discreet inquiries himself once he discovered Ikari-san's dilemma. In fifty years, no-one save those that had come from Tokyo-3 had ever even heard the child's name before.

"Ahh, lovely lovely Kyoko-chan, such a pleasure it is t-"

"Don't try that on me, Kyoraku-Taichō," said the tall redhead, slapping him with a folded fan, "or I'll tell Ise-san."

"So cruel..."

Ukitake had to smile, watching his friend's antics. He _would_ expect such an attitude from Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu, mother of the 11th Division's spitfire 7th Seat. "Soryu-san. What brings you here?" he asked, gesturing towards their surroundings. Due to his tuberculosis, Ukitake was allowed to remain at his family home for most of his administrative duties. Indeed, there were several piles of reports that he would have to examine on his low writing table. He heard a splash. With a sigh, he stood up, looking out towards the koi pond. Sure enough, his co-3rd Seats were hip-deep in the now-crowded water as they argued who was the better 3rd Seat.

"Are they always like that, Ukitake-Taichō?"

"Very nearly," he said with a smile. He winced as Kotetsu Kiyone was knocked over by a giant koi that jumped in her face. He remembered when he found out that Yachiru had transplanted them from the Kuchiki compound.

With a sigh, Kyoko dropped the bright smile on her face. She turned towards the snow-hair captain. "I'm worried, Ukitake-Taichō."

"What about?" asked Shunsui, all levity gone from his voice. Both he and Jushiro knew that Kyoko had been part of Project E; if something was wrong, she was often one of the first to know.

She dropped heavily into a chair, seemingly exhausted. "I'm worried about Yui."

Dark brows furrowed, Jushiro fetched a tea set. Pressed a warm cup into tense fingers. "What is it."

A shallow sip to calm her nerves, Kyoko replied. "She's starting to crack." She turned towards the two captains. "She had been trapped in that monster for more than ten years. Ten years with only that indescribable beast." She stared blankly into her cup. "Its not something I can tell you about. Sōtaichō has ordered that no-one knows about it, and those that did were sworn to secrecy."

Ukitale met his friend's glance. Suspicious? Him? The _last_ time Yamamoto-Genryusai kept something like this under wraps, it nearly resulted in the total destruction of Karakura Prefecture in Tokyo. Not to mention the decimation of Soul Society in general.

If he were to be honest with himself, Ukitake could understand where Sōtaichō was coming from; he'd tolerated the existence of Ichigo and company due to the acute crisis already underway. Aizen, Tosen and Ichimaru had openly broke from Seireitai; the loss of three Captains had been devastating, not just to the Gotei 13 in general, but to key personnel as well; Kira of 3rd Division had never truly gotten over Ichimaru's betrayal. Add in the threat of the Espada, and a newly-awakened Vizard was very much the lesser issue. Even now, he privately suspected that Yamamoto-Genryusai was waiting for Ichigo to make a fatal mistake; he would then come under the jurisdiction of Soul Society and the worlds of the dead and the living would be once again separate.

This "3rd Impact", according what Yui and Kyoko had been able to tell him, was at least as big a crisis as the Winter War had been. And because it had only been discovered after the fact, it had been all the more dangerous.

That brought him to the bunch that Dr. Ikari considered friends. The Children of Tokyo-3 were an unusual bunch; unusual that they had all died so young, and yet were well-versed in the art and ways of battle. As far as he knew, using children as soldiers was frowned upon, considered to be taboo, by today's standards.

_Something_, as Ichigo sometimes quoted, _was rotten in the state of Denmark_.

Like Hitsugaya, he also had asked to examine what little documentation they had on the "Impact" phenomenon. Unlike Hitsugaya, he'd been turned down.

Another thing that Kyoko had been able to imply was that Yui had been essential to the effort to counter Impact when she had been alive, as had her son Shinji. There was no Ikari Shinji documented anywhere.

And it was eating the woman from inside out.

Not two months ago, he'd been able to arrange for a "field mission" for Dr. Ikari, assigning her to monitor Karakura Prefecture for spiritual and dimensional instability. In that time he was able to get her to speak to Urahara Kisuke; his remarks on that visit were ominous, but in hindsight not a surprise.

"_She's close, Ukitake. It may be a week, it may be a decade, but she's close. I know many things, and seeing someone so spiritually screwed that that Vizardization is only a paper's width away is not something I have ever seen. Not even with the others. It's certainly not helping that, next to the Ayanami girl in 6__th__, she's the closest to bankai."_

"_If she starts to crack, get her _here_ to me. I don't care how, but get her here. Sanctuary for a Vizard is hard to come by, but it's easier for some than others."_

Grim news indeed. Kisuke had been lucky enough to get Hirako and the others out as it was; he doubted Yui would be so lucky. It looked like that he might soon have to take the former 12th Captain up on his offer-

A mountain, crushing him to oblivion. A fiery chill like a solar flare, incinerating all of creation. A cross of white fire, rising like a sun in the distance. _'Thats 12__th__ Division!'_

"YUI!"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

_'She is going to be replaced!'_

It was the only thought in his head, ringing throughout an already devastated mindscape.

_'Asuka's...dead!'_ It was like a never-ending nightmare. Failure after failure; each one was his personal responsibility. One by one, the Children had fallen. To Angels, to EVAS, to fellow human beings...throughout it all, he was rendered useless.

"The Dummy Plugs will suffice for 00 and 02 for now," the doctor continued on, seemingly unaware of his anguish. "With 01's core gone, we'll have to install another. Perhaps someone from the 2-A reserves." She reached down, smoothing her charge's hair. "You don't have to worry about Angels anymore; they're no longer your responsibility," she said gently. "This place is no place for _children_."

Naoko stood abruptly, turning away. The spirit monitor was beeping wildly. In many ways, it resembled a heart monitor, with the ubiquitous oscilloscope-like display. Only this time, it measured the reiatsu of whoever it was hooked to; the display was jammed to the top of the display, the small machine actually _smoking_. "Irresponsible _child_, breaking everything he touches." She walked over to a speaker by the door. "Dr. Akagi. I would like to speak with Kurotsuchi-Taichō-"

The woman's words were lost in a haze as his breathing changed. Hands flexed savagely, tearing into the mattres and sheets. His breath came in gasps, as if he'd run a marathon sprint. His eyes bled over to black. Then red, going through the spectrum until it settled on green.

"Embrace. Shogoki."

* * *

Author's Notes:

Well, that wraps up Ode to Joy, the 4th chapter of Memento Mori. Yare yare, another chapter.

Finals and increased homework had played some merry hell with my writing, but I finally got this out.

To James Rei's Guardian:At this point, I'd just be repeating last chapter's response to you. All I can really say is thanks for noticing, it helps me keep on track.

To Fifth Horseman: Yes, Shinji's attitude will mess with more than a few heads (I have a few ideas as to what'll happed when he finnaly makes it to Karakura). As for Gendo, he's Rokubunji now, not to mention thoroughly cowed by his initial encounter with Yui in Seireitai; he's still a schemer, but he's quite loyal to 2nd Division, if only to please Yui. As for Yamamoto, think about it from his perspective; you've just found out about a fast track to Godhood. You'd want to keep it under wraps too, I'd bet.

To justanotherguyathiscomputer: Yes, this will be a Shinji/Rei eventually.

To SithKnight-Galen and Lord Edric: Kaoru? As an Angel, his consciousness was obliterated in 3rd Impact, when Adam fused with Lilith. Yes, there is considerable time-distortion between T3 Earth and the 'Bleached' Earth. And yes, they _do_ patrol alternate dimensions. That's why I love the 'Soul Society' concept, as its sort of an afterlife and therefore a bridge between dimensions. As for Asuka? 11th. Definitely 11th; you think she'd fit anywhere else? And yes, it is implied that both Rei and Yui are close to bankai. Asuka too is close to bankai. As for Aizen? For now, don't expect him. Assume that he was killed as the conclusion of the Winter War; I'm trying to keep this as close to Bleach canon as I can for now.

To 6thChild: No, Yui's not going to cut her way though Seireitai for Shinji, as Yui/Ukitake is a secondary pairing here.

To Invincible Shinji: The Angel War veterans (not to mention everyone in Soul Society) will _definitely_ notice Shinji's presence; that's next chapter. As for the Vizards, yes they will become involved eventually, as will some of the surviving Espada (won't say who, yet).

To Weapon-VII: Shinji's zanpakuto is the Lance of Longinus. Like in NGE, the Lance can alter its shape depending upon the intent of its wielder. And yes, Asuka knew what it was from the start; she just couldn't believe it.

To Reikson: Thanks for the name; where'd you get it? As much as I'd like, I don't know Japanese. As for the Impacts, most of those who died had been consumed in the S2 that the Geofront had become in End of EVA; only very few had been able to escape it's pull to make it to Soul Society.

To The Fanfic Stealer: As explained above, Yamamoto firmly believes in the separation between the living and the dead. Deathberry got off because of the crisis already underway (Winter War). Harem? Writing Rei is going to be hard enough. Maybe a _lot_ later, if this goes on for that long.

I hope that answered all your questions for now.

Next up, Shinj's presence is rather _forcefully_ announced by his Ressurrecion. And trust me, Soul Society has _never_ dealt with anything like this before!


End file.
